Sunday, August 13, 2017

After Turning Down a "Shark Tank" Offer, This Genius Entrepreneur Went and Raised Over $3 Million From Crowdfunding

Katherine Krug is the founder and CEO of BetterBack, a company that makes devices to help with lower back pain. What is notable about this entrepreneur is that she raised over $3 million to start her company without using any investors. She did it by utilizing crowdfunding.What is crowdfunding?

Crowdfunding is using small amounts of capital from a large number of individuals to finance a new business venture. It's a growing form of alternative financing that allows the entrepreneur to retain complete control over their work. It is estimated that in 2015, over $34 billion was raised in the U.S. by using crowdfunding.

How did she do it?

Katherine first tested the waters by asking 120 of her friends if they would donate just $1 to her company; and it worked! She then initially invested $10,000 of her own money to develop her product.

Next, she raised more than $1.1 million on Kickstarter - the world's largest crowdfunding platform. Then, she landed an appearance on ABC's Shark Tank, and during her pitch to the sharks, she received and accepted a very lucrative handshake deal with Lori Griener for $750,000 for just 8% of her company!

But then she changed her mind

But after the show, Katherine changed her mind about the Shark Tank deal, stating that "it was not in the best interest of the company." So she turned down the $750,000.

Remarkable, however, she went and raised another $1.9 million on Indiegogo, another popular crowdfunding platform.

So all in all, Katherine raised over $3 million through crowdfunding - making herself the first solo female entrepreneur to ever raise this much!